25 Weird Coffee Trivia to Astound and Amuse You

25 Weird Coffee Trivia to Astound and Amuse You

By Denny Lyon @ HubPages

From Denny: Wrote this fun piece a couple of days ago. I had more fun reading up on coffee history and, I guess with too much coffee in me, started writing amusing commentary to pair with it. Decided to turn my pleasure reading and some research into an article so all my online friends could enjoy laughing out loud with me.

Who knew reading bits and pieces of world and ancient history could be so much fun? Found some awesome coffee photos to go with it too, wow! the folks over at flickr outdid themselves in Creative Commons.

Just click on the title link to take you to the awesome article!

Thanks for visiting - and definitely THANK YOU for all your support!!!

Photo by allygirl520 @ flickr

Libations Friday! 31 July 2009

Featured today: Cold coffee recipe, funny birthday quotes, original poem about how to conquer abuse in your life.

From Denny: Yesterday was my birthday so I thought I'd mellow out on the early AM posting today... :) (lame, I know!) Basically, I took yesterday off and am up early putting together today's post which usually takes some time just to load it into the online editor.

Anyway, at our house we celebrate birthdays all week long with more than gifts, flowers or chocolates. We celebrate with birthday jokes, quotes, or stories. We like to annoy the birthday person to the point they will never forget their birthday this year or any year! It also goes a long way to making a person feel loved and special to be reminded more than once we are glad they are sharing the planet with us.

Here are 9 birthday quotes which we find amusing. If you like to make your own greeting cards for birthdays some of these would be a great idea to include for a friend or loved one to make them smile!

Image by Kapil Karekar via Flickr

9 Funny Birthday Quotes

Time may be a great healer, but it's a lousy beautician. ~ Anonymous

The old believe everything; the middle-aged suspect everything: the young know everything.” - Oscar Wilde

Inside every older person is a younger person wondering what happened. ~ Jennifer Yane

Wisdom doesn't necessarily come with age. Sometimes age just shows up all by itself. ~ Tom Wilson

A diplomat is a man who always remembers a woman's birthday but never remembers her age. - Robert Frost

I never forget my wife's birthday. It's usually the day after she reminds me about it. – Anonymous

Age is a number and mine is unlisted. - Anonymous

Last week the candle factory burned down. Everyone just stood around and sang, 'Happy Birthday.' - Steven Wright

People ask me what I'd most appreciate getting for my eighty-seventh birthday. I tell them, a paternity suit. - George Burns



Photo by nyki_m @ flickr

Creamy Espresso Coffee Ice Cream Cooler

Serves: 4

Birthdays in late July can be a bit*h! It's hot, steamy and people can get grumpy crowded together. Why not make everyone happy by cooling them down with this ice cream coffee cooler? Watch the birthday gifts roll in! :)

Ingredients:

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup half and half

1 1/2 cups hot water

1 tablespoon instant espresso coffee (or leftover strong coffee)

4 standard scoops coffee ice cream

Directions:

Combine the chocolate chips, cream and half and half in the jar of a blender. Cover and puree until the mixture is smooth, about 2 - 3 minutes.

In a small bowl stir the espresso into the hot water until dissolved. (Or skip this step if you have leftover strong coffee or just want to make fresh expresso.) Add the espresso to the chocolate mixture and mix until well blended, about 2 - 3 minutes.

Put covered blender jar in the refrigerator and chill until cold, about 1 hour.

At serving time blend the mixture for a short while, until frothy. Fill 4 glasses 3/4 full with coffee mixture and top with 1 scoop of coffee ice cream. Serve immediately.

Don't forget to laugh a lot and enjoy yourselves!



From Denny: Speaking of birthdays, I wrote a new birthday poem this week. Do you find around your birthday that there is all this good energy in the air? Mine feels so positive and peaceful. This time of year I always try to write some poetry, sometimes more. Well, this week something unexpected that reminded me of the past popped into my world.

Whenever I get a new follower signed on from Blogger (look in the sidebar) I check to see if they have a blog and I make sure I follow theirs too. You never know when you might learn something new from someone else and I sure don't want to miss anything. That, and I like to support my friends!

A new follower, a talented poetess by the name of Am I Dead, Yet? (her blog is the same) is the new follower. She is also a friend on HubPages. So, I read through several of her posts and landed on one on her birthday. She was wishing herself a happy birthday because she knew the abusers in her life sure wouldn't.

Actually, this act is a great idea to boost your self-esteem when in a negative situation. If you have to reaffirm yourself to your self, then do it. It's the right call to keep your spark alive in this world and to keep from getting completely burned out. Little by little this woman is discovering the smallest things you can do to survive and later thrive out of this bad environment.

I was struck by how much our childhoods had been so similiar: terrible abuse. She is still struggling with reconciling the garbage. Well, I did my time in hell, figured it out, healed myself and pushed forward into the light of a much happier life.

So, I thought I'd write a poem for her - to laud her as a person and a talent. Poets often write each other poems. Artists often paint each other paintings. Writers often riff off each other in answer. Maybe in your writing you could do the same for someone in your life.

This poem is also useful for others who have been abused and are struggling with their identity and to free themselves from a negative environment. People who have not experienced abuse and are struggling to understand what is going on inside the heads and hearts of friends and loved ones who have been abused, this poem is informative. You really can heal yourself; you really can dare to dream for a better life!

You Are Worthy Every Day!



Photo by soylentgreen23 @ flickr


Happy Birthday to a quiet beautiful soul
Who knows how to shout in the darkness
Wade through surging waters and come out dry
Huddles by her heart’s warm fire to revive
Carefully stepping out onto a new path
While nobody’s looking…



Photo by Rampant Gian @ flickr


Happy Birthday to a touchingly beautiful soul
Who knows not to be forced silent any more
Pushing back the mean-spirited into the abyss
She just climbed out of today, never return, ever
Swimming upstream against bullying naysayers
While everybody’s looking…



Photo by left-hand @ flickr


Happy Birthday to a growing lovely soul
Who knows she is in transition away from abuse
Casting off ugly words, crafting instead beautiful words
Building a creative foundation of new life
Unwinding, putting to the fire the mean parent tape
While the abusers shrink back in new found fear…



Photo by John-Morgan @ flickr

Happy Birthday to you as you win each day
Walking farther away each step from where you were
Hugging close the dream unfolding into new reality
Living the Love each new moment you create
The shackles of your mind unlock and fall down
While the world embraces one willing to be loved and love…



Photo by mark sebastian @ flickr


Happy Birthday to a sensitive poetess
Who can employ the past to be her servant
Swaying and dancing with exquisite words
Protecting her new path as fearsome weapons
To stun and confuse fools who no longer can stop her rise
Creation unveils “I am,” traveling moment to moment into infinite Beauty...



Denny Lyon
Copyright 27 July 2009
All Rights Reserved

For more information about how I experienced abuse and figured out how to heal from it - as well as people's reactions to the poem, go here on HubPages: Push Abuse Out of Your Life and Out of Your Head

Coffee Photo by once and future @ flickr



Photo by 1happysnapper Hugs to All @ flickr

Thanks for visiting, everyone! Have a great weekend and have some fun!

birthday quotes, poetry, Birthday, Coffee, denny lyon, Espresso, Greeting card, Happy Birthday, HubPages, Ice cream, Types of chocolate, Baking and Confections, abuse, healing, PTSD, trauma, funny birthday quotes, humor, flickr, beautiful photos

Totally Ridiculous Comedy: Jacks Nightclub

Totally Ridiculous Comedy: Jacks Nightclub

By Denny Lyon @ HubPages

From Denny: "I like nonsense - it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living. It's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope... and that enables you to laugh at all of life's realities." - Dr. Seuss

Wrote this recently as a raucous fast-paced ridiculous short story. It's really a silly very short story. Take a look and you will be amused!

Writing Exercise

Many times I will assign myself some kind of writing exercise to loosen up my mind to push it out of the usual day-to-day analytical mode of just plain dealing with life, you know, solving problems. You might need a break from everything you do, well, this is a great way to take a vacation without spending any money or leaving the house - how convenient! :)

Seriously though, writing like this is such a good idea to stretch your imagination, give you more ideas of what else you could write and most of all, no pressure of deadlines or expectations from yourself or others.

The idea is to forget most of what every writing teacher ever taught you. Sit down to the keyboard and start writing, literally, whatever silly thing comes to mind, the more ridiculous the better. Don't plan a thing; don't outline a plot, a theme, characters, nothing. It's strictly funny brain drivel!

The second idea to keep in mind as far as technique is to use a couple of "don'ts" like run-on sentences and cliches which usually are the kiss of death for a good write. But when it is a zany little romp like the short story here it actually is a fit!

Try your hand at this kind of writing exercise, have some fun, and then laugh your socks off at what comes out! The only rule? It has to be utterly and completely ridiculous!

Here's an excerpt from my world of the ridiculous:

"Jack jumped over the electric blue fox - who was hunting down the orange cat - who was preying upon the stupid cockroach that was having an identity crisis - and believed he was a popular dragonfly down at the local Irish pub - because he sang Irish songs everyone loved and wrote some damn good poetry.

The orange cat circled back to chase the identity crisis cockroach - who just knew he was really Irish in a former life - while the blue fox preened and bathed in the fast-paced lights of the nightclub – this fox enthusiastically embraced blue as the new fashion neutral - it was Jack who was looking for the weird alien orange cat that kept eluding him - who was stalking the brave Irish-singing cockroach determined to make it to Broadway.

The powerful-singing cockroach drowned out the elegant Irish pub-singing dragonfly - and soon the people customers complained about the strange odd noises blaring from the rising platform – it was two ants standing on a leaf singing opera - and more ants joined them from the audience singing 49 Bottles of Guinness Beer on the Wall and Get Down Tonight! – and soon the nightclub was jumping and bumping - and the people were dancing and squishing and splatting the friendly ants - who got the place hopping on a Saturday night in the first place."

For the rest of the story just click on the title link! Thanks for visiting!



HubPages, literature, Lyon, online writing, Short Stories, short story, Tonight Show, writing exercise, Online Writing, Arts, Denny Lyon, Short story, The Social Poets

Poem titled "First Impressions"

Image by jcolman via Flickr

Poem titled "First Impressions"

By Peggy W @ HubPages (a friend)

From Denny: This is a lovely short six line positive poem you will enjoy!

Dishonor: Cheated Election Results in Iran

Photo by Shahram Sharif @ flickr

Dishonor: Cheated Election Results in Iran: "Current Iranian leaders move into a dangerous era: clerics may become an endangered species in Iran and political assassinations will become the order of the day if the will of the people continues to be suppressed."

By Denny Lyon @ HubPages

From Denny: Wrote this on Sunday as the people in Iran weighed heavily on my mind. My heart really goes out to them during this time. Just click on the title to take you to the article. It's a little long to put up on the blog. Thanks for visiting!

Organic Coffee That Burns Fat!

Image via Wikipedia

Organic Coffee That Burns Fat!: "Bskinny Coffee aka Skinny Coffee is a Thermogenic Fat Burning Coffee that helps you lose weight while enjoying a great cup of coffee.

The combination of Coffee and Weight Loss could be a huge winner since Coffee is the second most consumed beverage on the planet and weight loss is a 35 Billion Dollar industry. Together this could make Bskinny a household name, not to mention make Boresha an absolute fortune."

By bskinny @ HubPages

From Denny: Here's a short article about coffee from a new writer over at HubPages who is, of course, promoting their coffee company. This weight loss idea is a new one on me, fascinating read! Especially nice that the proceeds from this coffee company she writes about go to help children in Africa caught up in the civil wars and participating as soldiers.

Parable: Blue Heron Balancing the Wind

Parable: Blue Heron Balancing the Wind

"Parable about finding our place in life and trying to create balance. Rhyming a poem in an unusual way. How you can help in conservation of this magnificent bird the Great Blue Heron and awesome photos."

By Denny Lyon @ HubPages

From Denny: This is a short article and an original poem coupled with a lot of awesome nature photos. Too many photos to put up on the blog. HubPages is a great platform for longer articles or a slideshow of photos. Enjoy! Just click on the title link to take you to the article and thanks for visiting!

Photo by mikebaird @ flickr

Consciousness, Thoughts and the Brain

Another friend of mine over at flickr who is awesome! Image by alicepopkorn via Flickr

Consciousness, Thoughts and the Brain: "This is a cyber conversation I had with a friend that was thought provoking and stimulating. I wanted to share it with you, perhaps it will tweek your own thoughtforms."

By Jewels @ HubPages

From Denny: I love items like this as they are rare to find. Sometimes you can suddenly happen upon some of the most interesting conversations! Thanks, Jewels, for sharing this one with us. Many people have questions as they study meditation on a deeper level; the idea of what thoughts are comes up often. You will enjoy this read and the comments below it!

The Political Propaganda Corner 31 May 2009

The Political Propaganda Corner 31 May 2009: "One small example of how propaganda worms its way into and affects our lives."

By Denny Lyon @ HubPages

From Denny: Originally, this was a post for this blog but figured it was way too long to place here. This is basically a small tutorial about breaking down a political propaganda piece you get in your email from time to time. Just click on the title link to take a look. Thanks for visiting!

Photo by ercwttmn @ flickr

A Story Set to Song Titles

A Story Set to Song Titles

by Janetta @ HubPages

From Denny: This is a clever idea from a new writer over at HubPages. She took song titles and created a story using them. She marked the song titles in bold. Tak a look and try out your own ideas for fun!

Photo by Mourner @ flickr

ARE YOU A COFFEE LOVER? 35 SIGNS OF BEING A CAFFEINE ADDICT

In the spirit of Libations Friday!



ARE YOU A COFFEE LOVER?

35 SIGNS OF BEING A CAFFEINE ADDICT:

"So are you as hooked as I am to coffee?

COFFEEBEANS WHAT ARE THE SIGNS?

So how would you know if you are a coffee crazy?
Here are some of the signs to see if you are a caffeine addict." 1 funny video.

By mhei @ HubPages

From Denny: Since this Philippines writer is so amusing AND loves coffee, well, she deserved a hall of fame moment to be featured on this blog! She is also on my friends list over at HubPages and is quite a character like so many writers over there. The publishing industry needs to hike on over to HubPages and snap up a number of the funny writers over there.

Photo by Ballistik Coffee Boy @ flickr

The Joy Makers: Feel the Love

The Joy Makers: Feel the Love:

"Improv group brings joy to surprised thousands

Stop here for free joy, hugs, love and a happiness high that will last for days!" 9 videos featured to lift your spirits for sure!

By Denny Lyon

From Denny: For just a little while, forget about job loss, the economy and all your worries. These funny videos done by some terrific improvisation folks is well worth the laughing time!

I pulled them all together into one article as your go-to place when you need cheering up from a lousy day or when your thoughts turn to depression. There is no way to stay depressed after watching these great YouTube videos.

Photo by -Gep- @ flickr

Songs Sure To Put A Smile On Your Face

Songs Sure To Put A Smile On Your Face: "Do you ever have those days where you just need a song to pick you up? Sometime there's only one thing that has the ability to put a smile on your face and that thing is music. Here are some songs that are sure to do the trick, no matter what genre of music you're into... I've got some for everyone!"

By dana825
Photo by Dr. Hemmert @ flickr

Scam, scam, the rip-off man

Scam, scam, the rip-off man: "One of the most common scams seems to be the bank scam. I must receive two emails a months from some ‘bank’ or other in the guise of being mine."

By ajbarnett

From Denny: Here's a run-down of all kinds of scams on the internet these days coming at everyone, not just the elderly.

Photo by au_tiger01 @ flickr

Peom: I Travel Thru This Life

I Travel Thru This Life

By CJBeige
Photo by *L*u*z*a* @ flickr

From Denny: Casper has done it again! He wrote about our life's longings yet in a short brief poem. Difficult to pack that much meaning and beauty into such a small space, my friend! Check out what he has to say about wondering of our lives' paths.

Find Freelance Product Catalog Writer Jobs

Find Freelance Product Catalog Writer Jobs: "The catalog industry needs you. As a product catalog writer you will be writing unique product descriptions for a variety of products, you will be writing general descriptions based on the photos in the catalog.

You can write for all types of catalogs from electronic products, to engineering parts, or fashion items. Writers are the ones that explain the features of the items in the photos, listing the prices and dimentions."

By Research Analyst
Photo by Porcelaingirl @ flickr

From Denny: If you weren't scared off by yesterday's article to see if you had the internal stuff for free lance writing... Here's an article to direct you to writing product descriptions as a way to make a living.

Freelance Writing for a Living

Freelance Writing for a Living: "I am going to put forward nine questions that you need to ask yourself and, like the elimination stage of a reality talent show, intend to get rid of 10% of you at every stage.

The ones who are honest with themselves have the attributes and drive to make it, and the next few Hubs will be a little more enlightening. I am also talking about freelance writing for a living – some of you may want to write a book, for example, so go for it."

By Sufidreamer
Photo by jillallyn @ flickr

From Denny: Here's an honest reality check - or slap of cold water in your face - if you decide you think you can be a free lance writer. Tough words about a tough profession from a writer. It does help you sort out where you are in your thoughts. It also helps you realize where you are in the process of writing if you think it is a pleasant hobby or something you could turn into a money-making profession. Like any profession there is always a dark side to it and here he begins the telling.

Great Peace Quotes with Great Photos

Great Peace Quotes with Great Photos:

Quest for Peace

“Mankind must not only seek Peace. We must pursue it with all the deeply felt sincerity of our hearts. We must pursue Peace with the diligent work of our hands every day in every relationship we know. Peace comes a little at a time, rippling outward until one day it touches and convinces all.”

– Denny Lyon, 3 March 2009"

Familiarity Breeds Contempt - Or does it?

Familiarity Breeds Contempt - Or does it?: "When I wrote the Self-Improvement hub entitled, 'Change Your Beliefs,' about how your beliefs control your life, I gave an example of how your beliefs can change.

You see, how you live your life is based on your beliefs. You can change your beliefs, and by changing your beliefs you change your life. So, if you want a better life, ypu must develop better beliefs!

One of the problems, though, is recognizing a disempowering belief that needs changing."

By Frederick Pearce
Photo by dboy @ flickr

From Denny: Here's his part two of an ongoing conversation about building self-esteem. This is an interesting angle he's coming from about how we can be so familiar with something we don't realize it is hindering us in our goals.

Twitter: 30 Simple Ways To Supercharge Your Effectiveness On Twitter!

Twitter: 30 Simple Ways To Supercharge Your Effectiveness On Twitter!

By Julie-Ann Amos

Do you love social media? But do you love to Twitter? If you don't know how to tweak or tweet just yet, learn how to fly out of the nest from this article. Very informative for us newbies to the Twitter site that is so much fun! Not only is it good for the newbies but also especially helpful and knowledgable for the intermediate and advanced Twitter set. Start your Monday morning off right with this informative read.

Julie's book The Secret World of Ghostwriters is listed in The Social Poets Store, bannered above and below the posting area. Check out her book as she has been a ghost writer for years and knows what she is talking about.

Follow Julie on Twitter; I do! She's as lovely a person as she is a wonderful writer.